2011-12 Miami Heat Predictions
Written by Steve Janus
Few teams can make it to the NBA Finals and be as disappointed as the Miami Heat are after losing to the Dallas Mavericks. When the Heat went out and added LeBron James and Chris Bosh to team up with Dwayne Wade, the expectations of winning the NBA Championship was at an all-time high in Miami. It took some time for the Heat to gel together, but they ended up finishing with the second best record in the Eastern Conference at 58-24. They showcased their talents by knocking off the 76ers, Celtics, and Bulls to get to the Finals, but failed to deliver when it mattered most.
There is no question that the pressure is on the “Big Three” to step up and back up all their talk this season. The way they go about their business has made them one of the most disliked teams in the NBA, which only makes it that much harder.
The Heat decided to not bring back veterans Mike Bibby and Jamaal Magloire and they also lost big man Zydrunas Ilgauskas to retirement. They were however able to go sign Shane Battier away from Memphis, bring in Eddy Curry, and re-sign Mario Chalmers, James Jones, and Juwan Howard.
The trio of Wade, James and Bosh accounted for nearly 71 of the teams 102 points, so it’s not exactly like they needed to make a lot of moves in the offseason. Not only are James and Wade two of the best offensive players in the game, their ability to lockdown defensively and make everyone else around them better is what makes the Heat such a dangerous team. James is a threat to put up a triple-double every time he steps on the floor. He averaged 26.7 points, 7.0 assists, and 7.5 rebounds a game last year. Wade isn’t far behind, as he put up 25.5 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 4.6 assists.
Bosh almost seemed to get lost in the offense at times, but he had to almost see it coming when he decided to team up James and Wade. Bosh averaged a career-high 24 points in his final season in Toronto, and came in having averaged at least 22 points over the last five seasons. In his first year with Miami he scored just 18.7 ppg. Wade and James have to figure out a way to keep him happy.
Chalmers and Joel Anthony will round out the starting five. Chalmers really came on strong in the playoffs, as Bibby became to much of a liability on defense. Anthony gives the team a solid inside defender and reb
ounder, who will be asked to do even more with the departures of Ilgauskas and Magloire
The rest of the team is made up of a bunch of role players. Battier gives them a solid defender and a guy who can hit down the open corner three, Mike Miller (Out at least a couple of months) is a deadly outside shooter, and Udonis Haslem does whatever the team needs of him on both sides of the ball, James Jones is another good spot up shooter. James Jones and Eddie House are two more guys who can hit down shots off the bench. The big wild card in the mix is Curry. The center was once considered to be one of the promising big men in the game, but that isn’t the case anymore. Miami could definitely use another big body in the rotation.
Prediction: 1st Eastern Conference Southeast Division - In my opinion the Heat are not only the best out of the Southeast, they are the best team in the entire NBA. Last year’s disappointment is only going to fuel this team even more. The only concern I have with the Heat is late game situations. It was an area they struggled with all season, as they didn’t seem to know who to give the last shot to. If they can get that figured out, they should be back in the Finals.
Find out where we have all 30 NBA teams finishing in our 2011-12 NBA Predictions article.
If you are looking to make some money this NBA season, be sure to check out what Steve Janus has to offer. Steve finished No. 7 overall in the NBA last year, thanks in large part to a 37-17 run towards the end of last season!
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